Sectional cane or walking stick



A ril 15, 1952 e. A. HAWKINS SECTIONAL CANE OR WALKING STICK Filed Dec. 16, 1946 Inventor General A. Hawkins Patented Apr. 15, 1952 SECTION AL CANE OR WALKING STICK General A. Hawkins, Dallas, Tex.

Application December 16, 1946, Serial No. 716,527

2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in sectional canes and walking sticks.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved sectional cane or walking stick which may be telescoped and collapsed into a small,

space or size when not in use, and which may be extended to its full length at a moment's noticewhen the cane or walking stick is to be used. Another object of the invention is to provide an improved sectional and collapsible cane or walking stick adapted for use more especially by lame or blind persons, said cane or stick being formed to include a visible and an audible signal which will be operated by the user to attract attention when he desires to secure assistance when about to cross the street or an intersection. A further object of the invention is to provide an' improved sectional and collapsible cane or walking stick which will be normally held in extended position by means of a latch device, said cane or stick also being provided with a whistle signal and a light signal being simultaneously rendered operable by the releasing of the latch device, and by pushing downwardly repeatedly upon the cane or stick to force air through the signal whistle within the body thereof. Another object of the invention is to provide an improved sectional and telescoping cane or walking stick having visual and audible signal means incorporated therein which will be highly efficient in operation and relatively inexpensive to manufacture and produce.

Other objects will appear as the description proceeds.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of this application,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved cane or walking stick;

Figure, 2 is a vertical sectional view through vided an improved form of cane or walking stick including an upper cylindrical section I being externally threaded at 2 on its upper end, and open at its lower end.

A central cane or stick section 3 is formed with a piston or plunger 4 upon its upper end 5, being slidably received in the open end of said upper section A whistle tube 6 is threaded through the piston or plunger 4 and is formed with a whistle opening 1 extending through its side.

A packing ring 8 is secured by the pins 9 to the central cane'or stick portion .3 below the piston or plunger 4, and a retaining ring In is disposed within the lower end of the upper cane section I, being held in place by the pins The lower cane section comprises a rod |2 which is fitted into the reduced lower end or ferrule |3 on the central cane section 3, being detachably attached thereto by means of the cross bolt I4 and cooperating nut IS.

A rubber foot piece or cup l6 of the usual construction is disposed upon the lower end of the lower cane section |2 to prevent slipping of the same when in use on wet or slippery pavements and streets.

A pistol grip handle I! is provided for the cane or walking stick and is internally threaded at l8 at its inner end for screwing on the threaded upper end 2 of the upper cane section I.

A heavy coil spring|9 will be disposed within the upper cane section between the piston or plunger 4 and the inner end of the handle I! for normally forcing and holding the upper cane section and the central cane section 3 in extended position. v The handle I1 is hollowed out as at 20 to receive the flashlight batteries 2| which are used with the red signal bulb22 suported in the reflector 23 and secured in place by means of the lens 24 and ferrule 25 at the outer end of said handle.

The handle I! is hollowed outor notched adjacent its inner ends as at 26 to pivotally support the bell crank operating lever 21 and integrally formed trigger 28 which are mounted on the pivot pin 29. One end of the lever 21 is connected by the wire or cable 30 with an electric switch 3|, which is held open by means of the coil spring 32, whereby when the trigger 28 is compressed or moved toward the handle l1, the switch will be closed to electrically connect 1 the batteries 2| and the signal light bulb 22 for illuminating said light bulb.

3 The other arm of the bell crank lever 21 will be pivotally connected with the upper end of the rod 33 which is guided for vertical movement in the guide 34 on the side of the upper section I, and terminates in the cam head 35.

A latch finger 36 is pivotally supported upon the pivot pin 31 at the lower end of the upper cane section I, and is adapted to extend inwardly through the slot 38 in said section, to lock the central and upper cane sections together. A coil spring 39 will be disposed about the pin 3'! to resiliently urge the latch or looking finger 36 into locked position.

The upper edge of the finger 36 is formed with a cam surface as at .0 so that when the trigger 28 is operated, the rod 36 will be moved downwardly with the cam head 35 engaging the cam surface 40 to move the latch or looking finger 36 outwardly, thereby disengaging and releasing the upper section, I from the central section 3. It'is. to be noted that-the tube 6 is hollow and is formed with a longitudinal bore and the piston bore is concentrically disposed about the upper end of the tube 6 to guide the same in-its reciprocal movement in the housing or cylinder I. The upper end of the cylinder 3 orcentral section' provides aseat for the piston 4 so that the central section 3, piston 4, and tube 6 move upwardly and downwardly in the housing I as a unit; the downward movement being responsive to the spring l9. Thus, a pair of telescopically arranged cylinders have been provided and a whistletube is disposed in the upperend of the lower cylinder with a piston secured on the upper endof the whistle tube and seated on the upper endof the lower cylinder, the piston being slidably disposed in the upper cylinder. The lower cylinder or central section is reciprocated within theupper cylinder or tube, causing the whistle tube to be reciprocated through the air within the cylinder. Actually, as-the lower cylinder or central section moves upwardly into the upper cylinder, air is forced by the piston 4 upwardly in the cylinder I. The air will take the path of least resistance and pass downwardly through the tube 6, through the whistle outlet 1, the air travelling into the lower end of the cylinder or central section 3 and out of the openings 42.

On the downstroke of the piston 4 a vacuum is created in the upper end of the cylinder 1 and airis sucked through the tube 6 from the openings 42 and the cylinder 3 into cylinder l. Thus, it is to be noted that during the reciprocation ofth'ecentral section 3 within the cylinder or upper section I, the whistle 6 is actually passed through the air so that the air moves upwardly anddownwardly through the tube, the air being allowed to escape through the whistle or outlet 1, and thereby producing an audible signal.

The red signal light will also flash when the cane is operated, and will provide a visual signal to indicate the need of assistance after dark.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that there has been devised and provided a highly efiicient form of sectional telescoping or knockdown cane or walking stick which will be provided with means for producing a visible signal and an audible signal when desired, so that the user of the cane may indicate and signal to nearby persons that he is in need of assistance in crossing a street or an intersection.

While the preferred embodiment of the instant invention has been illustrated and described, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention thereto, as many minor changes in detail of construction may be resorted to without departure from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A collapsible sectional walking stick or cane including an upper hollow section; a central hollow section telescopically received therein and a solid lower section fixed to the lower end of said central section, latch meansfor retaining said sections in an extended relationship a handle secured to the outer end of said upper section, an air whistle supported in the upper end of said central section and operated by reciprocation of the central section in the upper section, said central section being formed with a plurality of air discharge ports through which said audible signal may be heard, a plunger on the upper end of said air whistle, a coil spring between said plunger and said handle disposed in said upper section, and a trigger for releasing said latch mechanism for permitting the operation of said audible signal.

2. A collapsible sectional walking cane including a hollow handle secured at one end thereof, and comprising a hollow upper section, a central hollow section telescopically received therein, latch means for retaining said sections in an extended position and a solid lower section fixed to the lower end of said central section, a combination piston-and audible signal disposed in the upper end of saidfcentral section said'audible signal being actuated upon reciprocation of the central section within the upper section, a plurality of apertures in the lower end'of said central section and means for releasing said latch means.

GENERALA. HAWKINS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are-of'record'in' the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

